This invention relates to portable video camera recorder systems, each composed of a video camera and a video tape recorder (VTR), and more particularly to portable video systems in which the video camera and the recorder can be releasably connected with each other to be used as a unitary instrument.
Recent advances in the electronic art have promoted the trend toward minimization in the bulk and size of the video cameras and VTRs. Thanks to the use of solid state devices or CCDs, video cameras particularly have profited from minizing their bulk, size, and weight, so much so that they have been made equal to the size and weight of a small sized cine camera.
In contrast, even VTRs of the type using small cassette tapes, because of their drive mechanisms, electrical power sources, and other devices, cannot be reduced in size and weight to the level of the camera. Therefore, VTRs have commonly been suspended by a shoulder strap when in use. It is very likely, however, that even such VTRs will have in the near future be reduced in bulk, size, and weight. At the present time, portable video recorder systems make use of at least one cable for transmission of signals and electrical power between the camera and the VTR. The camera and VTR are constructed as instruments independent of each other. However, under the usual working conditions, they serve as portable instruments and are often combined as a pair when put into practical use.
Therefore, conventional systems have problems when portability becomes important. Manageability thereof is not only unsatisfactory, but while carrying them about, the operator is unable to act swiftly. When not in use, storage is also inconvenient.